Verizon CEO Lowell McAdam believes Microsoft will outlast BlackBerry in the smartphone universe. In a quote at the Goldman Sachs Communacopia conference, McAdam said: "The carriers are beginning to coalesce around the need for a third ecosystem. Over the next 12 months I think it will coalesce and you will start to see one emerge as a legitimate third ecosystem. In my opinion, it'll be between RIM and Microsoft, and I expect Microsoft to come out victorious."

While to some this statement could make some sense, a recent study conducted by Connected Enterprise showed 45% of Verizon customers didn't even know that a Windows Phone 7 existed. Those that did know it existed, indicated they didn't know enough about Windows Phone 7 to actually be interested in the platform. Ask those same customers if they know what a BlackBerry is and the answers would most likely be very different.

For many, myself included, Verizon has been turning its back on BlackBerry. Maybe it's the constant advertisements of Android powered devices or maybe the complete and total lack of enthusiasm for the newest BlackBerry 7 devices, but Verizon has gotten under the skin of many BlackBerry users. It's true, RIM has had its struggles recently, but for me it seems Verizon has almost completely given up on BlackBerry already. You can walk into a Verizon retailer nowadays and they either don't have any new BlackBerry 7 devices on display or they're so hard to find you most likely will miss them anyways. Contrast that to the giant posters and pictures of Android and iOS devices and you can understand our frustration.

So while it is surprising to hear the CEO of a major US carrier make a statement like this, it should be no surprise that this is Verizon's outlook on BlackBerry and why they seem so lackadaisical on our smartphones' future.